Ready Set Go

My son hollers "Ready, set, go" before bounding down the hall as if he's both lone sprinter and starting horn, announcing to the world he's old enough now to run fast. When's the last time you took steps toward readiness prior to taking off?

My inbox contains reports on "organizational readiness," "talent readiness," "learning readiness," "e-readiness" and a "desirability readiness." In business, the readiness buzz often implies general preparedness rather than vigorously working through activities you and your organization are readying yourselves for.

While I can make a neurologically sound case for acquiring copious information (it builds the neural pathways which scaffold more learning ahead) your power to put knowledge into action at the moment you need it should be the true test of learning anything new. You're not ready until you've gone through the paces, adopted and adapted, and accurately perceived what the work actually involves.

True readiness comes from knowing in your bones you can meet the demands of new situations and adjust when you hadn't anticipated those spot on. It comes from moving past "I remember learning about that" to "This is like the time that other thing happened." It's how you learned to play a sport, drive a car, and get a date. How ridiculous not to first practice various scenarios, even if you can't think of them all.

Benjamin Disraeli, former prime minister of Britain, said, "One secret of success is to be ready when your opportunity comes." More than a century later, though, education programs (school and company training alike) frequently sidestep the messy business of actual readiness -- turning the knowledge you acquire into actions you feel comfortable with and adapting to improve while learning more.

Although it's unrealistic to expect yourself to feel primed for every situation, getting ready helps you to lay the groundwork for bouncing back and bouncing in again.

Practice makes possible.

When we lived near Atlanta I joined a beginners' tennis team. My husband was the coach so everyone assumed I'd play well. Ha! Frequently watching him play only proved knowing about doesn't easily equate to knowing how. Telepathy isn't a learning technique to count on. While I intellectually grasped what to do, I didn't improve until I put into practice the effect of moving in or standing back. It wasn't so much what I learned in practice, I was moving. I learned from my mistakes, with body parts not in my head, and I could feel when I was hitting and serving correctly. I'm still no Anna Chakvetadze, but I can play.

Practicing creates connections between body and brain to complete specific movement. It also helps establish the big-picture in your thoughts. Chinese culture values practice so highly the expression for learning includes two symbols: one for studying, the other for practicing constantly. Learning comes from activity itself, not reaching a goal.

Find the end at least once

Imagine moving to a new town and asking someone for directions to the nearest grocery store. People determined to foster your learning-skills rather than grocery-acquisition-skills might reply, "How do you think you get to there?" You might cycle through what you know about local roads, but you won't get a quart of milk. If, however, you were told to turn left at the first stop sign, follow that road to the traffic light, turn left and follow that road until you see the grocery, you'd be there in a few minutes. On the way home, because you reached the end, you might have the confidence to branch out, take a different route.

Although some argue that the more you learn up-front the more you can experience, I believe the more you experience, the more you're open to learn and the wider breadth you can accomplish. By working back from the end, you gain the skills and leeway to forge your own path.

Try as if you mean it

Innovative thinker Dean Hovey taught his daughter to ride her bicycle in under an hour. He put on training wheels so she felt how a bicycle maneuvered. Then he removed the training wheels and bicycle pedals altogether. Without distraction to figure out what to do with her feet, she gained the rhythm and sensation of riding on her own. When Dean put the pedals back on, it was only one small addition. Not much had changed, though now she could ride.

When you get ready, create similar conditions to those you're aiming to encounter, adding in each new factor slowly so you can adjust with each step.